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Takae Kuchiki
"The patron saint of vengefulness." Takae Kuchiki was the former 5th Seat of the 5th Division and later Acting Chief Adjudicator of Central 46 before being discovered as the mastermind of a plot to illegally reorganize Soul Society's government and thus, guilty of high treason. Takae Kuchiki is responsible for the majority of recent actions that weaken Seireitei, to include the release of the White Hollow virus across both natural and supernatural worlds, the Seireitei Civil War, and the Eterna Summitt, a minor conflict which still led thousands of Shinigami dead in the deserts of Hueco Mundo. His strength level is currently unknown, though it is suspected that his full power may equal or even surpass that of General Yamamoto. He is currently the oldest surviving antagonist in Bleach: The Beginning, and is generally regarded as one its two primary antagonists. Personality Before being recruited to Sosuke Aizen's 5th Division, Takae Kuchiki was held in high regard by the entire Kuchiki clan, especially his first cousin, Byakuya Kuchiki. Following the "leave of absence" of his fiancee Jennifer, Takae became confused and despondent for several years until Byakuya encouraged him to end his period of mourning and live a full life. After joining the 5th Division and discovering the truth about his fiancee, Takae continued to behave in the same manner he always had, but privately, he became oddly cold and in his dealings with Hollow, he was absolutely ruthless and willing to throw away the lives of his own subordinates in battle. Takae has likened himself to a revolutionary and believes that in his bids to topple Soul Society government, which he views as oppressive and archaic, he has the moral high ground. For these reasons, his chain of command typically contains "cracked gems"; individuals whom Seireitei has wrong in some way or another but still possess tremendous levels of strength. History Before the Current Storyline As a brilliant young scholar, Takae Kuchiki was considered one of the finest and smartest young men in the Kuchiki family. His research into Human World and even Shinigami history led to books which were taught within the Shinigami Academy and colleges of nobility for over a hundred years. Byakuya once even requested that Takae join him in the Gotei 13, but Takae, enjoying his research and soon to be married to and 11th Divisioner named Jennifer Dor, politely declined. After Take and Jennifer cleverly but romantically consummated their relationship the night before their wedding, Jennifer slumbered for a time until she suddenly woke up and felt a strange summoning from her zanpakuto. Believing that it was finally telling her its name, she took the zanpakuto and ran out into the courtyard of Takae's palatial family manor. She called out her zanpakuto's name, "Tanit", and although Takae celebrated, a disaster was occuring. Suddenly, a mask of bone and even blood covered Jennifer's face, somehow Hollowfying her. Byakuya, awakened from with his own wife, Hisana, witnessed this. Takae was left out of the loop as Byakuya, as head of the clan, brought Jennifer before Central 46. Jennifer revealed that she could remain in her usual form when the zanpakuto was sealed, but when she called out to Tanit, she would again be Hollowfied. Central 46 decided against executing Jennifer as they felt the 12th Division could learn much from studying her. This was simply a ruse, as the Kuchiki Clan had it in their power to have Jennifer freed under normal circumstances and Central 46 felt that it was too risky to have a Hollowfied walking among Seireitei, let alone a Hollowfied noble. As the Shihoun family would've undoubtedly leaked news of an assassination to the Kuchiki clan, Central 46 decided to seal Jennifer with Kido beneath the Maggot's Nest. When it became clear that he may never see Jennifer again, Takae sank into a deep depression; he wouldn't even attend the funeral of Byakuya's wife. Even as Byakuya's period of mourning for his wife ended, Takae continued to grieve until finally Byakuya intervened and in an effort to return Takae to his former spirits, had Takae enrolled into the Shinigami Academy. Takae resisted at first, but as Byakuya was head of the clan, he could not refuse him. Takae graduated from the academy in three years, but it was not due to familial influence. Takae proved he had raw, almost prodigious Kido skills and is one of the very few individuals to speak with his zanpakuto before graduating the academy. Upon graduation, he was personally invited to the 5th Division by Captain Sosuke Aizen and Vice Captain Gin Ichimaru. Takae would serve in the 5th Division for several decades, fiercely loyal to the 5th Division and its captain until the Vasto Lorde nearly decimated Soul Society. Through means barely touched upon by Takae, he learned of Jennifer's true fate and began planning revenge. Turn Back the Pendulum At some point immediately following the end of the war,Takae Kuchiki laid the foundation for research and experiments into ways Hollowfication could be used as a weapon while putting his master plan in motion. Takae recruited several Bounts in order to distract the Shinigami while he obtained the Sargon Grimmoire from the human world. His theft was successful in two ways: he not only captured what would soon be an extremely useful artifact, he also scouted Judah Williams and Seiji Shihoun, two indivduals whom would be instrumental in his Hollowfication experiments. Takae resigned from the Gotei 13 and accepted a long-offered position in Central 46 where he used his family's influence as well as his own persuasion abilities to corrupt Central 46 and quickly become Central's dominant personality. White Hollow Takae Kuchiki recruited mentally-stable 12th Divisioners Ryo and Hajime to capture Judah Williams and Seiji Shihoun as well as perform the experiments, which were successful to a fault. In underestimating the power of Hollowfication, Judah and Seiji escaped to Seireitei, unaware that their actions were under constant observation from an increasingly erratic Central 46 and Takae Kuchiki. When Takae was certain he had all members of Central 46 under his thumb through either respect, extortion, or outright fear, he proposed what he called a "change of Seireitei infrastructure". With that, Takae revealed his own Hollowfied form, which was considered to be a perfect hybridization between Shinigami and Hollow. He presented Central 46 with an initiative that could transform ordinary Shinigami into mindless soldiers of extreme strength that were best of all, expendable. The full motion passed without opposition. With what would come to be known as the White Hollow virus perfected, Takae unleashed it on Hueco Mundo, the Human World, and Seireitei. While White Hollow ravaged the planes, Takae rose to public prominence as a confident and charismatic leader who could speak out against the fractured and oppressive Seireitei government. Stating that even the Humans knew when to adapt and change, Takae proposed to bring democracy to Soul Society, a public proposal which definitely had its supporters. Byakuya Kuchiki, spiritually-aware humans, and the Seireitei Outlaws were able to uncover Takae's conspiracy and find a cure for White Hollow. When he was exposed, faced with certain arrest and execution, Takae opened a portal a the underworld and escaped his many attackers. How he was able to open such a portal remains unrevealed. The Seireitei Civil War Though Takae Kuchiki was not present during the Seireitei Civil War, the actions of Central 46 were based upon Takae's contingency planning as Central 46 knew they would soon be deposed by the Gotei 13 for their role in White Hollow. A being known as The Hollow with Glasses, a scientist contracted by Ta kae to assist in the development of White Hollow, was one of the masterminds behind Project Vizard Killer, which turned Central 46 loyalists and members of the Kido Corps into murderous and zombielike Hollowfied. With the defeat Central 46 and the Vizard Killers, it seemed as if Takae Kuchiki's intricate war had finally resulted in a defeat for Takae, but the contingency plan that was the Seireitei Civil War was a plan that was designed only to benefit Takae; it was intended to tie-up his loose ends while distracting the Shinigami from his next ambitious goal. The Eterna Summitt Due to the actions of the Quincy, the "walls between worlds" suddenly breached and the Gotei 13 were able to organize a full-scale invasion of Hueco Mundo. At the same time, a Summitt was organized by Boris Sangueno to decide whom would have ownership of the sought-after Forteleza Eterna. The Shinigami present at the Summitt entered into a wary alliance with a small but powerful faction of Arrancar-hunting Arrancar called the Paragona Familia. The Paragona Familia led a secret squad of Quincy and Shinigami to Las Noches where they expected to find the commander behind the attacks coming from Las Noches, but instead they found only the demon Marchosias, who attacked them. At the same time, just as Boris Sangueneo revealed whom was responsible for the breaching of the worlds, the attacks from Las Noches, and a plot to take over Hueco Mundo, he was killed by Vargas, leader of the Paragona Familia. Vargas released his reiatsu and stunned everyone in attendance with the exception of Byakuya Kuchiki and Tyris Jaeger, who failed to subsequently failed to subdue the Arrancar. Vargas made mention of Jennifer to Byakuya before revealing himself as Takae Kuchiki and allowing Feere, another demon subordinate, to possess the Quincy represenative Raziel and attack the gathered populace through him. As they fought with the possessed Raziel, Takae gathered his Las Noches forces and left Hueco Mundo. His current whereabouts are unknown, but it is known that the Paragona Familia remained in Hueco Mundo with new membership, co-led by the rogue Shinigami Substitute Shawna Harris and captain-level Adjuchas, Schizo Mamba. Powers and Abilities Master Swordsmanship Specialist: 'Takae's swordsmanship skills are so finely honed that he was able to block a Senka from Byakuya Kuchiki with a slight flick of his wrist. Takae has also demonstrated an ability to use dual zanpakuto expertly, revealing himself to be ambidextrous. '''Shunpo Master: '''Though he trained with both Byakuya Kuchiki and Yoriuchi Shihoun in his youth, Takae Kuchiki was initially nowhere near as fast as either. Through Shinigami training and eventually Hollowfication, his speed rivals, if not surpasses that of Byakuya Kuchiki. '''Kido Maste'r: As a noted historian and researcher, Takae knew about various "Lost Hado" even before enlisting in the Gotei 13. After enlisting, he mastered basic Hado within days and more advanced Hado during his time under Sosuke Aizen. Prior to Hollowfication, Kido was one of his two spheres of mastery. '''Genius Level Intellect: As a Shinigami scholar, Takae became famous within academic circles for his informative and fascinating books concerning everything from the rise and fall of the Akkadian Empire to the his debunking of a long held philosophy about the origin of the Hollow. His keen attention to detail and the nature of others has given him an ability to "read" people and situations, making him an extremely shrewd strategist in a battlefield or in politics. Garganta: Most likely mastered as a result of Hollowfication, Takae has demonstrated the ability to open portals to and from Hueco Mundo. The Gate: Though it has not been revealed how this is possible, Takae has revealed an ability to quite literally move been heaven and hell. Perfect Hollowfication: Whereas the group known as the Vizards are only "half-Hollow" as Takae calls it, he is a perfect hybrid with full control over his Hollow form and capable of utilizing Ressurecion. Hollowfication Infection: Also unrevealed is to how Takae Kuchiki has the ability to Hollowify others, though other Hollowfieds, Judah Williams and Seiji Shihoun included, have demonstrated this ability under different circumstances. Zanpakuto Victus - ''Victus is the name of both of Takae's zanpakuto. Prior to his Hollowfication, there was only one, but Takae has since decided to literally split some of his power into a second blade. The right zanpakuto, the original, was not initially his own as though it took many years, Takae was able to recover one of Muramasa's legendary and lost blades through his historical research endeavors. He immediately claimed the Muramasa-made katana as his own zanpakuto, and the blade was once said to be worth whatever it would cost to build eight Rukongai districts. The left blade is a jagged katana that is almost always covered with blood, except the blood is Takae's. It was created by his desire to section off his power in different ways while allowing himself to keep an advantage over his opponents who would almost always have but one zanpakuto. 'Shikai' After stating the release command, "''Vae Victus",Takae's zanpakuto are unique in that each of his zanpakuto can perform different offensive/defensive actions: Shikai Special Abilities Cradle of Sin- A condensed wave of reiatsu seizes and coils itself around the target's body and absorbs the target's reiatsu as they naturally try to release it to escape. The more a target struggles, the harder it is to escape and the more the reiatsu will squeeze until it can literally crush the target to death. Omerta- This ability allows Takae Kuchiki, on a limited scale, to bring the dead back to life to do battle for him as an undead slave. The risen-dead will retain their combat abilities from life, but will be without the usual imposed limits, such as stamina, because they no longer have a need to breathe. This ability has been rarely used by Takae and it's believed not even he can control it very well. Rampart - A wall of Hollow masks rises from the ground as an enemy attacks, blocking attacks such as Cero and mid-level Kido. Call of Meggido - Thus far revealed, Takae's deadliest attack. Victus acts as a form of lightning rod so that Takae can surround himself with a sphere of pure and nigh unbreakable reiatsu which is summoned from all three dimensions at an alarming rate. When sphere has reached critical mass, Takae forces it apart into any given number of smaller spheres and sends them towards his targets. This attack was capable of pummeling through the billion blades of Byakuya Kuchiki's Bankai. Bankai: Not Yet Revealed Criticism While White Hollow was arguably Bleach: The Beginning's most successful plot in that it convinced new players to stay and gave older players new ways to roleplay, players who'd waited through the entire event to kill the villain, revealed to be Takae Kuchiki, were disappointed when he fled to Hell. It's since been admitted that this was an intentional but last minute call as it was decided that Takae had "magnificent bastard potential".